Photo credit: AFP/Jonathan Nackstrand

Deaton hailed for work on ‘consumption, poverty and welfare’

Professor Angus Deaton, a renowned microeconomist from Scotland, won the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences "for his analysis of consumption, poverty, and welfare”, the Royal Swedish Academy stated on Monday. Deaton was hailed for his academic work on the links between consumption and income, and how public policy changes can affect rich and poor. He is perhaps best known for the Deaton Paradox – which explains that consumption varies surprisingly smoothly despite sharp variations in income, reported the Guardian.

Britain says crash was an accident

Five people, including two British Royal Air Force personnel, were killed when a helicopter crashed while it was trying to land at Nato’s Resolute Support mission headquarters in Kabul. Five other occupants of the RAF aircraft, which was carrying 10 people in total, were injured. A spokesperson from Britain’s Ministry of Defence said it was an accident and not a hostile attack. The incident occurred hours after a convoy of UK military vehicles was attacked in Kabul on Sunday morning, in which seven people were injured. Britain said the detonation of an improvised explosive device was the cause, while officials in Kabul said it was a suicide bombing. The Taliban then claimed it had carried out the attack in retaliation to the air strikes by the United States on a hospital in Kunduz on October 3, which killed 22 people.

Turkey suspects IS hand in Ankara blasts

Thousands of people took to the streets of Turkey on Sunday to mourn the 95 victims of the twin bombings that hit the capital city Ankara on Saturday. Some of the mourners chanted slogans against President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and clashed with the police, believing the government to be responsible. The government said that Kurdish rebels or Islamic State militants were likely to be responsible for the explosions. Turkish news agency Dogan also reported that police detained 14 suspected members of Islamic State in the city of Konya.

No Russian involvement on the ground in Syria: Putin

Russia will not participate in a ground war with Islamic State in Syria, President Vladimir Putin affirmed on Sunday. It has been nearly two weeks since Russia began conducting air strikes against what it claims are Islamic State targets, with Putin saying the raids will continue. The primary task of the Russian operation in Syria is “stabilising the legitimate authority in this country and creating conditions to look for political compromise,” he added. Brushing off allegations from the United States-led coalition that the Russia was not providing sufficient notice prior to conducting the strikes, Putin said Moscow had notified the coalition when it began its operation in Syria.

Suicide blasts in Cameroon leave 50 dead

Twin suicide bombings in northern Cameroon on Sunday killed at least nine people, a day after 41 people died in triple explosions in Chad that were reportedly carried out by the Boko Haram militant group. Two female suicide bombers carried out the attacks in the Kangaleri village, around 30 kilometres from the town of Mora in Cameroon, according to a report. Cameroon and Chad are part of a regional coalition that has been fighting Boko Haram militants, who have pledged allegiance to the Islamic State group operating in Syria and Iraq. Close to 17,000 people have been killed and more than 2.5 million made homeless since the Boko Haram insurgency began in Africa in 2009.

Nepal elects KP Oli as new PM

Even as protests over the recently promulgated constitution continue, Nepal’s parliament elected Communist Party leader Khadga Prasad Oli as its new prime minister on Sunday. Oli received 338 votes from the 597-member chamber, defeating his predecessor Sushil Koirala, who received 249 votes. Oli will face challenges of uniting Nepal over the new constitution, restoring normalcy of relations with neighbour India and giving impetus to construction after two devastating earthquakes earlier this year, which left close to 9,000 people dead.